House Committee Requests Questioning with the Duke of York in Jeffrey Epstein Investigation
A American legislative panel probing sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he undergo a deposition as part of its probe into Epstein’s criminal operations.
In a document made public on Thursday, a US representative, the top Democrat on the House oversight committee, urged that King Charles III’s younger brother cooperate with its probe.
The written appeal to provide testimony follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his princely title and agreed to surrender his property in Windsor.
Records and Accusations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in documents and aviation records secured from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s survivors, the late Virginia Giuffre, of sexual assault.
“The panel will examine allegations of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request data on Epstein’s network, circle, and associates based on the men’s enduring and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.
It sought details from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his friendship with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has always strongly denied any misconduct.
Content of the Letter
“It has been widely reported that your association with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for trafficking underage girls for sex work,” the letter said.
It added: “It has also been claimed that you went with Epstein to his New York residence, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been charged of abusing minors. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, combined with the newly disclosed 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further bolsters our belief that you may have important details about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”
A notification regarding the letter said it was supported by 13 other Democrats on the committee and requests a answer by 20 November.
Previous Remarks and Cooperation
The letter arrives a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be called to give evidence before the panel. The citizens has the right to know who was harming women and young girls alongside Epstein.”
However, the congressman does not have the power to legally require the former prince and Congress itself cannot force evidence from a non-US citizen.
In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to reply to US demands for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that lawyers and the FBI had contacted Andrew’s legal team to inquire on his previous pledge that he was “ready to help any relevant law enforcement agency”.
“It’s just for people to know whether Prince Andrew has fulfilled with that public commitment,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “given absolutely no cooperation”.
Calls for Justice
The representative said in a statement that “affluent and powerful men have avoided accountability for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the chance to come clean and deliver redress for the survivors. We will not cease fighting for accountability and openness for victims of Epstein and his group of partners.”
Another supporter, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing accounts to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as public reporting of released files, “it is crucial that Andrew works together with the active inquiry. If he is blameless, then he can clear his name.”
The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our probe will demonstrate that, and the affected individuals will receive long overdue accountability. The Royal Family’s actions removing Andrew of his honors show there is further to this story.”
The letter was issued on the same day the British king formally removed Mountbatten Windsor of his princely title. Charles III publicly made the alteration – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the royal office published in the Gazette, the UK’s official public record.
